Messi's childhood doctor spoke about growth hormone treatment

Lionel Messi's childhood doctor, Diego Schwarsztein, said how he overcame the Argentine's health problems.

"He was sent to me for treatment by the bosses of my favorite club, Newell's Old Boys. They said there were a thousand boys, but this one was definitely the best. When Messi came to me, he was 10 years old and very short - 125 centimeters," - Diego Schwarsztein said, according to Lent.az, citing foreign media.

According to the doctor, Messi did not fit any rules: "It was clear that something was wrong. Detailed analyzes lasted four months. His family was not rich, and this made the process difficult. It turned out that Messi's body did not produce enough growth hormone. One in 20,000 children is born with this defect.

I treated him for more than three years. He was a good patient, not problematic. It was clear: Leo would do anything to play football. Some people want to grow taller for aesthetic reasons, some to please girls, and Messi wanted to be tall in order to play at the highest world level. I told him then: "Don't worry about your height. You will be taller than Maradona."

And that's what happened. Messi is four centimeters taller than Maradona (165 centimeters). At that time, I was only sure that he would be tall. Now I understand that Leo is also better."

The doctor noted that the treatment consisted of injecting growth hormone into his leg or arm every day: "But he never complained, he was very determined. In total, the treatments lasted four years, he was given about 1400 injections."

The treatment was at risk in 2000-2001. It cost $1,300 a month. When Argentina was going through a major economic crisis, many medical insurance companies, including Messi's father Xorxe, faced problems. We managed for a few months, but then we had to go to Barcelona, where I studied. The Catalan club took over part of the expenses, but 70 percent of the treatment was done in Argentina before we left."
According to the doctor, the person who thinks that this treatment is a kind of doping is stupid: "These injections had no effect on him as a football player. We only equalized his chances with others. Without the medicine, he would be 10-15 centimeters shorter and would not even be able to get close to his current level.

We last spoke to Messi in 2014. I have been to Barcelona games and I have a very good relationship with his father," - Schwarsztein said.